1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to climate control. More specifically, this invention relates to climate control of a seat.
2. Description of the Related Art
Temperature modified air for environmental control of living or working space is typically provided to relatively extensive areas, such as entire buildings, selected offices, or suites of rooms within a building. In the case of vehicles, such as automobiles, the entire vehicle is typically cooled or heated as a unit. There are many situations, however, in which more selective or restrictive air temperature modification is desirable. For example, it is often desirable to provide an individualized climate control for an occupant seat so that substantially instantaneous heating or cooling can be achieved. For example, an automotive vehicle exposed to the summer weather, where the vehicle has been parked in an unshaded area for a long period of time, can cause the vehicle seat to be very hot and uncomfortable for the occupant for some time after entering and using the vehicle, even with normal air conditioning. Furthermore, even with normal air-conditioning, on a hot day, the seat occupant's back and other pressure points may remain sweaty while seated. In the winter time, it is highly desirable to have the ability to quickly warm the seat of the occupant to facilitate the occupant's comfort, especially where the normal vehicle heater is unlikely to warm the vehicle's interior as quickly. For such reasons, there have long been various types of individualized climate control systems for vehicle seats.
There are, however, other problems that have been experienced with existing climate control systems for seats. For example, some climate control systems are not easily integratable into existing seat construction methods. Such systems require a significantly greater number of parts as compared to existing automotive seats, and often require complex mechanical parts. In the past, this has resulted in increased costs for individualized occupant cooling in automobiles. Also, the mechanical comfort of the seat is appreciably affected in the systems employed, as compared to the comfort provided by standard automotive seats. Many times the user is able to distinguish between the comfort of seats with individualized occupant cooling and standard automotive seats. Further, the current techniques are problematic because they may limit the ability for vehicle designers to provide modem seating embodiments and stylistic designs.
Thus there is a need for an improved climate control system for seats.